Climbing
by SireenC
Summary: This is not written by Sireen..it's actually my sisters. It's a cute little fic about Merry and Pippin and shows the depth of their friendship. Includes a small flashback in the beginning, and then it's Pippin's 16th birthday. Frodo, Sam, and Gandalf a


Author: Sireen's little sister, Peleus15 :) Rating: General...she's only 10, so there's nothing bad in it! Disclaimer: Peleus does not own Lord of the Rings or any of its characters, places, etc. They are all property of J.R.R. Tolkien, and the movies, of course, were directed by Peter Jackson. However, the idea is hers, so don't steal it! ;P Sireen's Note: This is really my sister's first LotR fic, and she writes really well for only being 10! Please review it for her. Nice reviews, of course :)  
  
Climbing  
  
_{Flashback}  
  
Nine year old Peregrin Took trudged along beside his cousin Meriadoc Brandybuck. They arrived at Merry's favorite tree to climb, and Merry decided to teach Pippin to climb.  
  
"I'm going to teach you to climb today," Merry said. "Give me your hand." Merry grasped Peregrin's small hand and started up on the first branch. Then he pulled Pippin up beside him.  
  
"Pull yourself up to the second," Merry encouraged. With a little bit of struggle, Pippin managed to pull himself higher. "Good job, Pippin! One more branch!" Merry called out. He held out his hand for the young hobbit to grab.  
  
Pippin sat close to Merry to avoid falling off. When he saw how high up he was, he got scared and clung to Merry's arm.  
  
"It's all right, Pippin," Merry said, shaking out of his grasp and putting his arm around the hobbit's shoulders.  
  
The next morning Merry opened the door to find Pippin's mother standing there. "Have you seen Pippin?" she asked. "He vanished this morning."  
  
Merry shook his head. "I'll go look, though," he said. Grabbing a jacket, he raced out the door. He checked with Frodo. No Pippin.  
  
Then he got an idea. He raced to where they climbed yesterday. Once he arrived there, he saw a limp figure below the tree.  
  
"PIPPIN!" he yelled. He ran over and knelt by the boy. A huge gnash was bleeding rapidly on the side of his cheek. "Pippin," Merry repeated.  
  
Pippin's eyes fluttered, and he opened them. Merry picked the boy up, and Pippin went limp. His head laid weakly against Merry's shoulder as Merry hurried back to his house, where Pippin would be taken cared of.  
  
An hour later, Pippin's head was bandaged, but the boy was extremely uncomfortable and had lost a lot of blood.  
  
Merry went into his room that he shared with Pippin. He found him curled up crying because he felt horrible. Merry's mother was trying to comfort him but was having no luck.  
  
"Let me try," Merry offered. His mother nodded and left the room.  
  
Merry went over to Pippin's small bed. "Come sit with me," Merry said. Pippin continued to cry, so Merry picked him up in his arms and cradled him. They sat together on Merry's bed, and Merry rubbed his back and held him close. Slowly, Pippin's crying became softer.  
  
"Don't cry, Pippin," Merry pleaded, resting his cheek on Pippin's brown curls. Pippin looked up at Merry with big eyes.  
  
"You don't hate me, do you?" he asked.  
  
"How could I be mad at you?" Merry asked. "Who can I sit and hold and play pranks with?" he asked. Pippin snuggled against Merry's chest, relieved that he still had his favorite cousin. "What would I ever do without you, Peregrin Took?" Merry wondered.  
  
{End Flashback}  
_  
Now, Pippin was older but nevertheless not much wiser. Pip was celebrating his 16th birthday today, and Merry day after day asked himself the same question: What would he do with Pippin?  
  
Now he and Pippin were forbidden to go into the kitchen until the party because Pippin licked half the icing of his cake that Merry's mom had made. Merry had helped, but they got caught. They had tried every game they could think of, and they both could not hold back the urge to go lick the cake again.  
  
Merry remembered his present he had gotten for Pippin back in his room--another silk scarf, since Pippin had lost his last year. He knew Pippin was dying to have his present. The young hobbit loved any present from Merry and treasured it.  
  
Currently, they were sitting in their favorite tree, staring down at the Brandywine River. There was nothing else to do. Finally, Merry suggested, "Let's go find Frodo."  
  
Pippin swung down off the branches, and Merry followed. Bag End was not far once they crossed the Brandywine Bridge.  
  
They walked quickly together until they could see Frodo's house. Like usual, Sam was working in the garden. "Hello, Sam!" Merry yelled.  
  
"Well, hello, Mr. Merry. And happy birthday, Peregrin!" Sam said. He waved briefly and then continued working.  
  
Merry knocked on the round door until Frodo opened it. "Hello. Come in," Frodo said. He clapped Pippin on the back. "Sixteen, huh?" Frodo asked.  
  
Pippin nodded. They sat down at the small table, and Frodo poured some tea for everyone. "Why are you not at home?" Frodo asked, taking a small sip. "Wait, let me guess. You were kicked out," he answered himself.  
  
"Only the kitchen," Merry replied. He started to gulp his tea.  
  
"Soup?" Frodo asked. "I just made it."  
  
The cousins nodded eagerly. Frodo spooned out some soup into three bowls and passed them out. Then he yelled out the window to Sam for him to come join them.  
  
Sam came right in, without any of his protests or, "No thanks; I can't do that." They all sat down in silence and slurped their soup, especially Merry, who was quite noisy, until the clop of a horse's hooves stopped outside Frodo's door. Everyone look at Frodo, wondering who it was.  
  
Frodo opened the door and in stepped a familiar figure with a long stick-like staff and pointy hat. Of course, it was Gandalf. No one had known that Frodo had invited him.  
  
In the evening, the party was finally going, and the hobbits were all shouting happy birthday to Pippin. Merry placed his arm around Pippin's shoulders as they made their way over to the snack place. Even though Merry was eight years older than Pippin, he still enjoyed having his cousin around. Frodo had a beer and was already drunk, and Merry realized that Frodo never made sense when he was drunk.  
  
"I don't get it, Mr. Frodo," Merry heard Sam say, scratching his head.  
  
"Oh, Sam, you're not thinkin' hard enough!" Frodo laughed and took another drink.  
  
Merry and Pippin got a huge pie and sat down on the other side of the bench across from Frodo and Sam. They both ate half and then listened to Frodo carry on a conversation that made no sense until it was time for cake. Of course, Pippin got the biggest piece and Merry the second biggest. They gobbled it down and raced over to claim leftovers.  
  
Frodo was finally becoming sober, and Gandalf was lighting the sky with firecrackers. After leftovers, Merry couldn't resist. "I'm taking a cracker," he said. "You coming?"  
  
Pippin nodded, and they sneaked behind the tent. Merry grabbed a cracker and pointed to the other side of the tent.  
  
"Let me light it!" Pippin whispered.  
  
"Don't mess it up," Merry warned. He handed Pippin the matches.  
  
Pippin eagerly struck the match, and he caught his finger by accident. "Ow!" he yelped. He shook his hand, and Merry watched the match fly. It just so happened to land in the area with the firecrackers. It shot up in flames, and several crackers managed to go off.  
  
"Run, Pippin!" Merry yelled. He pulled Pippin with him toward Frodo. The crackers looked like they had gone mad.  
  
"Duck, Frodo!" Merry shouted.  
  
"Duck?" Frodo asked. "Merry, you're pulling my leg. There's no ducks around--"  
  
Frodo was cut off by Merry, who ran into him, pulling Pippin down with him. He shielded his cousin's head. The firecracker just missed them.  
  
"Where did it go?" Pippin asked, jumping up, but he suddenly saw some more leftovers and could care less where the cracker went. He dug into the pie.  
  
Merry pulled Frodo up and dusted him off. "I guess you're still drunk. When I say 'duck,' you better drop!" Merry said.  
  
"Drunk?" Frodo exclaimed. "Drunk? I don't think so!"  
  
Same patted Merry's shoulder. "It's not worth it, Mr. Merry," he said. "Frodo's going to be drunk for a while," Sam continued as Frodo walked away.  
  
Pippin came back over. "Can I have my present, Merry?" he asked pleadingly. Merry pulled out the package and handed it to Pippin, who tore it open. "Thank you, Merry! I love it!" he said.  
  
"I'm glad," Merry said putting his arm around his cousin's shoulders. "Now, where's Frodo? I can't wait to see him dance drunk!" 


End file.
